Suspiria Snape
by Writingtoavoidlife
Summary: My name is Suspiria, but you probably know my father better. He's the Potions Master at Hogwarts, and I'm transferring there for my fifth year. There's just one problem - there is no way I'm being sorted into Slytherin. From what I've heard, they only take Purebloods, and I don't exactly qualify. Here's to a new school - and some new boys. *Will toe the line of M/MA**
1. Chapter 1

My dad picked me up from the airport twenty minutes late. He stuck out like a sore thumb, shoving his way through the crowds of muggles in a dusty old suit. Most of the other people on my flight had long since located their luggage and departed, so my gate was mostly empty.

When he finally reached me, he gave a disapproving glance at my attire - a mini skirt with torn wide style fishnets reaching up above my exposed midriff and a white crop top. "I knew I needed this," he grumbled as he slid off his suit jacket and threw it at me.

I rolled my eyes, hesitating briefly to decide if it was worth the fight, before I shoved my arms into it, intentionally leaving the front unbuttoned. He threw me an exasperated look, but grabbed my bags nevertheless and started off towards the doors.

"Where are we going?" I asked casually as we exited the airport and stood in line for a shuttle.

"You'll be staying with a few of my colleagues until we can find a more permanent arrangement," he replied.

"What's wrong with your house?"

"I've been tasked with housing someone whom I don't trust. The short notice didn't give me many options." He glanced sideways at me before quietly adding, "You're still practicing your Occlumency?"

I nodded, knowing not to question further. I had been trained in Occlumency since I could walk, and my father was prone to checking my ability without warning.

Our shuttle took us downtown, and we eventually made our way to the Leaky Cauldron. The barkeep exchanged a glance with my father, and we were led to a private room with nothing but a chimney, much to my dismay. I despised Floo Travel.

The chimney was large enough to accommodate us both, so my father grabbed a fistful of Floo Powder and beckoned me to step in. I awkwardly grabbed onto his arm, not completely comfortable with being that close to him, but also not wanting to end up in the wrong chimney.

"Malfoy Manor," he said lazily. The feeling was sickening, as always. Sols had little use for this kind of travel, and I had never gotten used to it.

My father automatically caught and steadied me as we stepped out into an unfamiliar living room. It was massive, but I didn't have much time to ogle as two sets of eyes were staring at me. It was a couple, about my father's age. A gracefully looking man with shoulder length silver hair and steely eyes. His features were handsome, his expression reserved. The woman who I assumed was his wife was petite, her hair also fair, but warmer and with crystal blue eyes piercing me from a tired face.

"Severus," the man addressed my father.

"Lucius."

My father placed a hand on my shoulder. "My daughter, Suspiria."

More appraising looks. I awkwardly cracked a smile. "Big secret is out, I guess," I said.

The woman shook her head suddenly and gave a warm smile. "How rude of me! My name is Narcissa, and this is my husband Lucius. We have a son who will be in your year," she said.

I returned her smile shyly. "You'll be staying in Draco's room for tonight. He's spending the week with a friend on the countryside," she went on, and beckoned me to follow her. I didn't miss the meaningful glance she gave her husband. An inconspicuous way to allow her husband to speak with my father.

Her son's room was adorned with greys and silvers, with a dark emerald bedspread. A few quidditch posters were on the wall, but the room was pristinely clean. I imagined that was done recently, as I had never known a teenage boy to keep his room neat.

"I'll leave you to get settled," Narcissa said. "We will be moving you to the guest room tomorrow morning, we just didn't have much notice. I'll send for you when dinner is served." Translation: Stay in the room.

I nodded amicably as she exited the room, inconspicuously closing the door behind her. I raised an eyebrow at the scantily clad witch on the poster that was hung on the back door. Evidently, Narcissa hadn't noticed its presence yet.

I fished my bag of toiletries out of my carry on and I wandered into the en suite, wondering idly why a teenager had one, to clean up after the day of travel. I ran a paddle brush through my hair, sad to see my carefully placed curls had not survived the flight. I splashed some water on my face and studied my reflection.

My hair was thick and waved gently to my hips, and it was the color of snow. I always thought it was lucky because in contrast, my pale skin seemed to have some type of color. I had taken to coloring my thick eyebrows a dark brown color, craving some extra pigment to balance out my dark eyes. I had my father's eyes, they said. Up close they were a dark charcoal, but from a distance, or accompanying a scowl, they were convincingly black. My eyelashes were starting to look a little ashy and I wondered if I could get them dyed before school started. Blonde eyelashes made lazy no makeup days a non option when your eyes were as dark as mine. I would look downright sickly. Today, I decided to settle for a thick coat of mascara and a precise line of gel liner.

Even taking my time, the clock still showed an hour until any reasonable meal time when I was finished. I changed out of my flight outfit into something more casual. Black skinny jeans and an oversized men's tank top that bore the word SATAN across the front in block lettering. Then I started the grueling task of wrestling my hair into two french braids.

An hour and some incredibly sore arms later, I heard a knock at my door. I cracked it open to see my father looking rather relieved that I had changed into something with slightly more fabric. "Dinner is ready," he said simply.

We both stared forward on the way to the dining room, not speaking. I learned many years ago to not ask questions.

Dinner was uneventful. The adults seemed to not want to discuss anything with me present, but I could pick up on the tense expression on the Malfoys' faces. Every once in a while, Narcissa's eyes would flit over to me and back to my father, her face full of unspoken questions.

_How is this woman be in the inner circle?_ I thought. _Her face is so easy to read._

After dinner, I was ushered right back to Draco's room. Normally I would have protested at the sheer boredom of the situation, but after a transatlantic flight, I was ready to sleep for sixteen hours. I kicked off my suddenly heavy boots and lazily pulled off my jeans. I sank into the soft bedspread and buried my face into the pillow. This bed was more comfortable than any hotel bed I had ever experienced. I rolled slightly and was jabbed by the underwire in my bra, so I lazily reached around to unhook it. Once it was deposited haphazardly on the floor, I allowed myself to drift into a deep sleep.

I stirred awake an unknown amount of hours later in a state of confusion. I had momentarily forgotten where I was, and it was either very late or very early. A yawn escaped my mouth as I sat up and looked around the room until I remembered my surroundings. A light caught shone out of the corner of my eye, my own reflection. My usually dark eyes were lit up an eerie silver and seemed to be casting a glow - one of the traits that gave Sols excellent night vision. With another yawn, I closed my eyes and laid back down on my side, content with falling back asleep.

The sound of breath catching startled me and my eyes flew open to see two steely eyes peering back at me. Someone else was lying in the bed!

I moved backwards so quickly that I fell out of the bed and landed hard on the floor, blanket strewn around me, bewildered. Those eyes looked familiar.

"Mr. Malfoy?" I hissed.

"_Excuse me?!"_ came a horrified reply. To my relief, the voice was much more youthful.

A head peered at me over the edge of the mattress. It was a boy about my age. He had the same silvery blonde hair as Lucius, but it was shorter and much messier. He also had a disgusted look on his face. "Why the _hell_ are you in _my bed_ expecting _my father?"_ he demanded.

All the pieces clicked together for me, and I couldn't help but laugh. "I take it you're Draco, then?" I finally got out, as I stood back up. "I'm Suspiria. Your mom gave me your room while they 'prepare' a guest room," I explained.

"If you say you're going to be my new stepmother-" he began incredulously.

"No, no, no," I said, trying to keep it together. "All I saw was your eyes and they just look like his. Obviously I wasn't expecting anyone or I wouldn't have _thrown_ myself onto the floor."

Draco considered that for a moment before seeming to accept it. "Sorry," he said sheepishly, sitting up. I sat cross legged on the bed across from him, and he blushed for some reason.

"Um," he said before awkwardly fishing the blanket off the floor and handing it to me. Evidently, his eyes had adjusted enough to take notice of me not wearing pants. I draped the blanket over my lap and stretched my arms up with a yawn.

"So why are you back so early anyway? Your mom said you were with a friend for the week," I asked.

He looked unmistakably guilty. "Well I wasn't really staying with a friend, per se," he mumbled. "More like a girlfriend, well she was anyway, but now I guess-"

"You got dumped and couldn't stay there anymore?" I summarized for him. Draco shrugged in response.

"Well, I guess this is your room so you kind of have dibs on the bed. Can you show me to a guest room so I can finish sleeping off this jet lag?"

"I don't think that's a good idea. You see, if my mother didn't immediately put you in a guest room, that means they are all being used for something, and my guess is they will all be magically sealed," Draco explained.

I sighed heavily and resolved myself to crashing on the couch. "You could just sleep here," Draco suggested slyly. "I mean this bed is plenty big enough."

I raised an eyebrow and his subtle hopeful expression. "Didn't you have a girlfriend, like, a few hours ago?" I asked.

"Weren't you sleeping next to me, like, a few minutes ago?" he countered. I fought back a smile.

I considered the situation for a moment. He seemed harmless enough, and my reflexes would far outmatch his on a bad day.

"You better not snore," I said laying back down on my side and pulling the blanket up to my waist.

He laid down as well, facing me. "What if you have terrible morning breath?" he teased.

"I've been sleeping for a few hours," I responded. "Do I?"

He leaned in closer to my face and inhaled. He lingered with his mouth a few inches from mine when he responded. "Nope."

A few moments passed. "How about me?" he finally asked.

I brought my face incrementally closer and shook my head. Neither of us pulled back. I looked purposefully at his mouth and slowly brought my eyes back up to his, daring him.

A long moment passed, then another. Neither of us seemed to be breathing, but I could feel our pulses sounding between us. Finally, I couldn't take it and stretched my neck to be even closer, the tip of my nose nearly brushing his. The corner of his mouth turned up just a little bit before he finally took the hint and pressed his lips to mine. He felt my smile against his mouth as I returned his kiss and boldly pulled me closer.

I wrapped my arms around him and turned slightly, rolling onto my back and pulling him on top of me. HIs mouth grew hungrier as I felt his hand curl around my calf before hiking my leg up over his hip. I briefly wondered how far he had gone with his girlfriend, but I noticed his hands shake slightly with nerves as he ran them up my leg.

I broke off the kiss and glanced up at him. My suspicions were confirmed, his face gave away his inexperience, though he had no way of knowing how well I could see it. I lightly ran my fingers over his shoulders and said, "As much fun as I'm having I still am rather jet lagged." I stifled a yawn for his benefit.

He gave me a grateful smirk and rolled off of me. I turned to my side so I could lay my head on his chest. I heard his heartbeat gradually slow. A real yawn came out of me this time, and I focused on the delightful warmth coming off of his body. "Seriously though," I murmured. "You better not snore."

His chest shook gently with a quiet laugh as I drifted back off to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning was comfortable, like waking up after a sleepover with a longtime friend. Except with a lot more silly grinning.

"Can I borrow some of you pajama pants?" I asked. "I really don't want to unpack all of my luggage if I'm moving into another room after breakfast."

"Leaving so soon?" Draco teased as he tossed a pair of green plaid cotton pants at me. "I thought I was a fabulous roomate."

I pulled my hair out of my braids before breakfast, they had formed my hair into messy waves, and followed Draco down the stairs.

Just outside the drawing room, Draco tugged at my arm and raised a finger to his lips. With his chin, he motioned to doorway. I cocked my head so I could better eavesdrop.

"What do you mean it can't be moved until next week? I don't want that thing in my home any longer," Narcissa was saying.

An unfamiliar female voice responded. "You have been entrusted with this, and you shall perform your duty without complaining. Do you want him to question your loyalties again, sister?"

"Eavesdropping, are we?" a voice came from behind us, making us both jump. In the next room, I heard the voices go silent. Lucius was standing behind us looking down disapprovingly.

Narcissa and my dad peered around the doorway to see us standing there sheepishly. My father evaluated me - with my bed head and a boy's pants on - and his eyes flashed dangerously to Draco.

"Morning Dad," I said.

"Let's eat some breakfast," he said slowly, not taking his glare off of Draco.

Breakfast was served at the kitchen table rather than the dining room, and seemed to be altogether less formal. Narcissa immediately began questioning Draco. "What on earth are you doing home?"

"Crabbe dared Goyle to drink some of the pond water and he got super sick," Draco fibbed smoothly. "It was late at night so I just came in through the Network."

"And you thought it was appropriate to -" she blustered looking at me. My father hadn't stopped glaring.

"He slept on the floor," I interjected. "I woke up and he was sleeping on the floor. I asked to borrow some pants because I didn't want to unpack. He wasn't even in the room when I changed."

This seemed to calm Narcissa down. Notably, Lucius seemed completely comfortable the entire conversation.

"Now, now. It was only for one night. We've raised a fine boy and she'll be moved down the hall in a few hours anyway, so what's the harm?" he asked.

This seemed to remind Narcissa about something. "Actually, we need to discuss her sleeping arrangements after breakfast," she said pointedly to my still seething father.

"You can't clear out the guest room yet, can you?" I asked. Four heads turned to me in surprise. "That's what you were talking about in the drawing room. Your arrangements fell through." More staring.

"I don't know anything else," I finally said. "I don't really care either, except that I'm not sure where I'm sleeping tonight."

My father finally stepped in. "Suspiria is well versed in not asking any questions, Lucius. She just has been noticing a lot more details since her… since the accident."

Lucius nodded curtly. "Well perhaps her senses will rub off on Draco while they are rooming together."

Me and Draco glanced at each other in surprise, while both Narcissa and my father tried to protest.

"I _hardly_ think that is appropriate, darling-"

"Absolutely not, Malfoy-"

Lucius raised his hand to silence them. "The only other option is to have one of them on the couch observing the fireplace at all hours of the night, and I am far more comfortable with two teenagers rooming together than either of them sticking their noses where it doesn't belong." He turned to us. "I expect you two to amuse each other and stay out of the way of the adults this summer. In fact, I am expecting some visitors any moment now so I suggest you go help miss Snape get settled."

We both stood up quickly and left the table. I was positive that my father was about to tear into Lucius, and I didn't want to be around for it.

As soon as we were out of earshot of the kitchen, Draco turned to me. "Professor Snape is _your father?" _He asked.

"Was he one of your teachers?"

"He's everyone's teacher! He's the Potions Master at Hogwarts! Why didn't you say something?"

"I'm sorry, do you tell everyone who your father is the second you meet them? What's the big deal anyways?"

"For one, I didn't even know he had a kid."

"No one did. It was on purpose," I responded. That seemed to halt his line of questioning.

We were at the door to his room. I opened the door and sat down on the bed, patting the space next to me.

"Okay, you get three questions," I told him. "I don't like to be interviewed."

He sat down next to me and seemed to be weighing some options. "_Any _question? With honest answers?" he finally said.

I raised my eyebrow, intrigued, and nodded. He smirked and asked, "How far have you gone with a guy?"

I laughed. "Are you five? I'm not a virgin if that's what you're asking," I responded. Then, when I noticed his ego seemed a bit bruised I hastily added, "Where I'm from, most people my age don't make a big deal out of it."

"Here it's kind of a big deal," he admitted sheepishly. "Last night I thought.."

I guessed where he was going. "I thought about it," I told him. "Then I remembered I'm not at home anymore, and things here are different."

"How'd you know?" He was hesitant. Insecure.

"You just seemed nervous," I told him honestly. "Plus, you had only just met me for a few minutes," I laughed.

He tilted his head and screwed his mouth up into another grin. "Yeah, I'm not normally like that," Draco said.

"Blame it on teenage hormones," I said with a wink. "Any other questions?"

"I think I'm going to save them, actually," he responded mischievously. "I think it's officially time for you to unpack, though."

It took forever, and it was well into the afternoon when we finally collapsed onto the bed, starving. His closet would have been crammed to the brim if it didn't have an enlargement charm on it, and his once pristine bathroom was now cluttered with makeup, lotions and hair irons.

"Well that's done," I said. "What do you do for fun around here?"

"Lately there hasn't been much to do, what with all the visitors around. I try and stay out of the house," Draco responded.

I perked up. "Where are we going then?"

"We can catch a show in Diagon Alley, if you're up for it," he suggested.

"As long as you feed me, I'm famished."

Apparently, the Malfoy's had some extra important business to attend to that night because when Draco asked for his allowance, his father handed him double and told him to book a few rooms at the Leaky Cauldron for the night.

"Is that normal?" I asked.

"Not until this summer."

Though Mr. Malfoy had supplied us with enough cash to have separate rooms, Draco and I decided to splurge on a suite instead. "He's had me stay here for a whole week before," mused Draco.

We ate an early dinner in the bar and then wandered up the Alley towards the stage. It was Saturday evening and the streets were packed, but we managed to land a nice spot to watch a pyromancer show. By the time the crowd started to dwindle, most of the shops were already closed.

We walked all the way up the alley anyway, I hadn't been there in a few years and Draco watched me ogle at all the displays. "I've always wanted to try one of these," I commented outside of the Broom Shop.

Draco was aghast. "You mean you've never ridden on a broomstick before?" I shook my head. "In Hogwarts you're required to learn in year one! I've got to take you flying, its the best feeling in the entire world!"

He shook his head and continued walking, unconsciously grabbing my hand. I let him. A few shops down he stopped unexpectedly. "Does that mean you've never play Quidditch before?"

I shrugged. "I've never really had the game explained to me, so I don't really know much about it," I answered.

He looked as if I had confessed a murder to him. Boys are so dramatic about sports. I sighed, resigned to spending my night having every minute detail of the sport explained to me, but I wasn't altogether unhappy. Draco completely lit up when he was talking about it, becoming more animated that I had yet seen him.

"Don't worry, at Hogwarts everyone comes to every match, and the Slytherin team is going to win the Cup this year," he was saying. "I'm the Seeker, and we have the best Chasers in school. Everyone on the team is really excited to get back to it, since we didn't have a season last year because of the tournament -" Draco cut off suddenly, shooting me a side glance, as if he had said something he wasn't supposed to.

"I know everything," I said quietly. "I know that this is the most inconvenient time possible for Severus to suddenly step up and play father for the first time in his life. I know everything is about to change, and I know a lot of people are really scared and are really unsure. My mother kept me in the loop before…"

"What happened to her?"

There it was, the first time anyone had dared to bring it up. THe first time I had to say it out loud. "She died a few weeks ago. It was quick," I responded, stubbornly ignoring the lump in my throat. "My dad is all I have left now."

We had reached the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron. Draco was looking at me with sad eyes and I couldn't deal with it. "What do you say we down a bottle of Firewhiskey and spend the night being stupid?" I asked.

Draco laughed. "There's no way Tom will give either of us Firewhiskey."

I raised an eyebrow mischievously. "Wanna bet?"

Okay, so I had never actually drank before, and, in retrospect, splitting an entire bottle between two skinny teenagers was a horrible idea. Especially since we were both too stubborn to be the first to call it quits. Also, since we had only gotten one room, we also only had one toilet to vomit in. It was a long night.

The next morning we awoke the an owl scratching at the window. Draco went to attend to it while I stuck my head under the bathroom faucet to gulp down some water. He appeared at the doorway clutching a bit of parchment.

"Hope you didn't get too attached to the manor, we're here until further notice," He said.

"Are we at least allowed to go grab some clothes?" I asked. On cue, a knock came at the door. I opened it to find an empty hallway, save for two trunks that had appeared at our door. Inside of Draco's was a comically large sack of galleons.

"Their way of saying sorry," he explained.

"In that case, I think the best way to say sorry is to treat us to a spa day," I suggested.

"I wholeheartedly agree," Draco responded. We hurriedly changed and headed down the stairs, brainstorming ideas for what else we would do for the week.

The Wizard Spa was located was a gleaming building near the middle of Diagon Alley. We were just about to head inside when I heard Draco groan beside me. "Oh no," he said. I looked around and located the source of his dismay. A girl with short black hair was marching towards him. She had a squashed up face that reminded me of a dog, and she looked pissed.


	3. Chapter 3

"Hey Pansy," Draco awkwardly said, but it was pointless. She simply shoved passed us in a huff and marched into the spa.

"Oh, don't mind her dear," a more mature voice said. "She gets in her moods, you know."

"Hey Mrs. Parkinson," Draco said, turning to a tall woman who seemed to be following Pansy. She was absolutely breathtaking. Her green eyes sparkled from underneath a lush set of lashes. She had soft, romantic features and a full set of lips. Her hair was a glossy mocha color and waved gently to her waist.

"Oh darling, I've told you a thousand times, call me Rose," she responded, then gestured towards the doors. "Shall we?"

Pansy was waiting for her mother inside, stewing. "And Draco dear," Rose said as we entered. "I hope there are no hard feelings at all. I've told my daughter a hundred times to aim lower, but she insisted on trying to spend time with you. It's really no surprise it didn't work out."

I felt my eyes widen and glanced at the obviously embarassed girl ducking behind her mother. Rose casually reached out and stroked a wave in my hair as she addressed her daughter. "See darling? This is what a good conditioning routine looks like, I only wish you would listen to me."

Pansy looked like she just wanted to melt into the floor. Rose went on. "How rude I've been! Rose Parkinson," she said, delicately offering me a hand.

I gently shook it and replied, "Suspiria Snape." Now it was Pansy's turn to widen her eyes.

"Ah, Draco's mother did mention she was having some guests stay at the house," Rose looked around. "Is she here?"

"Oh no, they're entertaining right now and suggested we take a day to relax," I told her. No need to ruin Pansy's day any more.

"Well then you must join us! Pansy's been feeling a bit down so I've booked us the full service! Besides, my daughter has such trouble making friends, especially with girls who are so much prettier than her," Rose said bluntly.

I shot a look at Draco who shrugged as if to say _I don't know how to get you out of this._ "That sounds lovely," I conceded. "Let me just change my reservation and I'll meet you in the sauna."

Rose gave me an approving smile and ushered her daughter towards the changing room.

I turned to Draco. "She's just looking for gossip," Draco explained quickly. "She's pretty much a professional socialite and can't wait to tell everyone she met Snape's daughter that no one has ever heard of."

There was some information I needed to know before diving into this situation. "Why did you and Pansy break up?" I asked hesitantly.

Draco sighed heavily. "She's just kind of awful. I know it seems excusable - you just met her mother - but she would literally walk around just to point at people and say everything she thought was wrong with them. It started to feel like nothing else would come out of her mouth and I just couldn't take it one night."

"So now I get to spend the day with a mean girl and her meaner mom?" I asked.

"I'll make it up to you," he promised, giving me an unexpected grin.

I allowed a brief half smile back before taking a deep breath and heading to the counter to change my plans. I kept on the eyelash dye appointment, though.

Pansy's mother had booked a private sauna, so I changed into my swimsuit and didn't bother with a robe. "Oh my dear, those legs go on forever!" Rose cooed when I entered. Pansy was seated as far away from her mother as possible in the small room, her knees drawn up to her chest on the wooden bench.

"Thank you," I said shyly, taking a seat between them.

Draco was right, as Rose immediately started in on thinly veiled personal questions. "Did I hear you right earlier that your last name was Snape? As in _Professor_ Snape from little Pansy-pie's school?" I noticed Pansy sink further into her corner at her nickname.

"Yeah, he's my dad," I answered, hoping he would drop it.

"Do I know your mother?" Mrs. Parkinson asked.

"Probably not. She moved to the US shortly after I was born. I lived most of my life there."

"Did she move back with you? Are you staying with Professor Snape?" she pressed. I saw right through her false interest. Even without Draco's warning I could tell she was carefully filing away details to pass on to someone else later. I decided to take evasive action.

"She's dead," I answered flatly. Rose had the decency to look embarrassed, and was silent briefly. I took the opportunity to change the subject. "What is the full service anyway?"

"Let's see," Rose placed an already immaculately manicured finger to her chin as she thought. "Well obviously Pansy will need to do a conditioning treatment, that's a must. Then we will do a full body exfoliation, hair removal, massage, take a break in the hot tub, and I think I may add a few inches to my hair, what do you think?"

"I could _never_ do extensions. My best friend from home, Leila, tried to do hers on her own and she looked like a werewolf for a _month_ before her mom finally found someone to correct it," I told her.

"You mean this is all naturally grown?" Rose gestured to my hair in disbelief.

"Real color, too. I used to dye it black, but the white roots looked so strange."

Rose looked over at her daughter. "What about you, darling? Think you might want to change your hair this time?"

Pansy didn't even make eye contact with her when she shook her head. She seemed to be trying to burn a whole in the wall with her eyes.

"I think you would look absolutely gorgeous with a little bit more length," I told her. "You have the _perfect_ natural highlights for some layers."

Pansy finally looked at me, studying me for a few moments. Then she shyly tucked a lock behind her ear and responded, "You really think so?"

I nodded in encouragement. "I would kill for those kinds of tones. My hair color is so flat, and I feel like an old lady," I complained.

And just like that, I had struck the ultimate girl bonding chord: Sharing insecurities. "Are you _kidding_?" Pansy said, scooting a bit closer. "Your skin is absolutely flawless, no one could ever think you're an old lady."

The day ended up being pretty bearable. Rose and I did manage to convince Pansy to let the stylist do a growth charm on her hair, and then she even accompanied me to my lash appointment. "It will _change your life,"_ I promised. I had some semi permanent curls set into my hair, and a pretty intense anti tangling potion put in.

Finally, Pansy and I decided to get hang out in the hot tub for a second round while Rose went to have an anti wrinkle treatment done. Apparently, Pansy confided in me, she had them done whenever she had a nightmare about getting old, which was about once a week.

"Can I ask you something?" Pansy asked hesitantly as I lowered myself into the warm water.

"Go ahead," I said, sensing where this was going.

She faltered. "What is that thing in your belly button?"

I looked down at my Sol Gem. I often forgot that humans didn't have them, and it probably looked pretty strange. Sols had a literal rock that grew inside the cavity where humans seemed to only store lint, and at my age it tended to be a bit temperamental with what color it decided to glow.

"Er, you've never seen one? They're all the rage where I'm from," I hedged, trying to think up a plausible explanation.

"Oh, is it like a belly ring? My mom won't let me get one," Pansy supplied.

"Exactly! My dad wouldn't let me get one, but he thought this would be a better compromise," I improvised.

"That's so crazy, I can't believe I never knew that Professor Snape had a daughter, and our age! Why don't you go to Hogwarts?" she asked.

"I'm actually transferring there this year. My mom wanted to raise me where she grew up, but then it… it wasn't working out."

Pansy fell silent for a moment before mustering up some bravery again. "Suspiria?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you Draco's new girlfriend?"

I laughed lightly. "Pansy, I met the guy literally two days ago. Plus, I think he still needs some time to process not being with you anymore," I told her.

She seemed to brighten up at the comment. "Really? Do you think he's sad?"

"Are you kidding? You're a total catch," I told her. "No guy could get over you in two days."

I really didn't see what Draco was talking about. This whole day Pansy had just been so ni-

"Oh my god!" Pansy suddenly hissed motioning to a girl our age who was walking to a neighboring hot tub. "Do you see that jawline? I'm surprised there isn't a five o'clock shadow on that thing!" Pansy snickered.

"Uh, I must have missed her," I dodged. "It's getting kind of late, I should go see if Draco is done," I told her.

"Yeah, my mom should be about done anyway. I'll see you around!" Pansy turned and flounced back towards the spa.

Draco had _definitely_ gotten a tan, and it was a bad one. "The lady told me it looked good!" he protested, his face going red as I doubled over with laughter.

"Oh man, she _lied," _I finally managed to respond, wiping a tear from my eye. "You look like an Umpa Lumpa!"

"A _what?_" he demanded, not knowing the reference.

"Forget it," I said. "Just go back and have it corrected."

It took about ten minutes, but he eventually returned looking a little more sun kissed and far less orange. "Much better," I complimented.

He looked pleased, but shrugged it off. "Would you like to accompany me to dinner?" he asked, uncharacteristically formally.

"What kind of dinner?" I asked, just bit flirtatiously.

"Well we both look fantastic, how about we go to a restaurant where dress robes are required?" Draco suggested. "I believe I said I would make the day up to you."

I have to admit I was a little excited. I had never actually been to a really fancy restaurant before, and I loved the excuse to dress up. For this occasion I wore a deep violet strapless dress with an impossibly large skirt. The dress was adorned with platinum glitter that magically sparkled no matter what light it was in. I pulled the top half of my hair back with a black silk bow and applied a deep red lipstick to my mouth that made my freshly whitened teeth shine. My eyelashes were already curled and black, but for good measure I applied a crisp line of gel liner above them.

Draco eventually knocked impatiently on the bathroom door. "We have to go, or we are going to be late," he called.

I rolled my eyes and called back, "One second!" I struggled to slide on my heels before I opened the door, still fidgeting with with my earrings.

Draco was facing away from the door and I got to admire him for a moment before he realized I had left the bathroom. His black dress robes accentuated his broad shoulders, and my eyes travelled up to his silvery blonde hair. I noticed for the first time how tall he was.

As he turned around I became aware that I had stopped trying to put my earrings in at some point and resumed my task, looking away from him for a moment, and I felt a faint blush rush to my cheeks.

"Wow," I heard Draco say breathily, and I looked up to meet his gaze. I was struck again by how handsome he was, but I was particularly entranced with how he was looking at me. Suddenly we were back in that same tense atmosphere from the first night we met. The silence became incredibly apparent as I just watched him watch me.

I opened my mouth to say something, to break the spell of the moment, but before anything else Draco suddenly crossed the room in a few direct strides. He placed his hands on either side of my face and pressed his lips to mine.

After a few moments he broke away but still head my face close to his. "What is it about you?" he murmured.


	4. Chapter 4

_Hello everybody. This is going to be a little bit of a shorter chapter as it is currently 3 am on Christmas Day, and I have to deal with family today._

* * *

Dinner was uncharacteristically silent. Neither of us seemed to know what to say, and there was the welcome distraction of divine food to keep us busy. Everyone once in a while I would peer up at him from under my lashes and I often had the distinct impression that he had only just looked away from me. I couldn't help but feel the evening would be far less awkward without my father staring daggers at Draco from the table behind me.

That's right, my dad crashed my date. Well, first he crashed my makeout session, after Lucius passed along to him that Draco and I had only rented _one_ hotel room. Then he invited himself to dinner. I was almost spared by the fact that Draco had made reservations for just two, but my father, in the most humiliating stunt, sat alone at a table for eight - the only cancellation the restaurant had. To top it all off, he was incredibly underdressed.

_I'm so sorry_ I mouthed to Draco. He simple looked at my father over my head and dropped his eyes back down. My father conveniently finished his meal the moment we did, and though we settled the bill first and nearly sprinted out of the restaurant, he appeared behind us as we were walking down the street.

"Well Dad, it was cool of you to drop by, but I'm sure you have some things to do tonight," I said pointedly at him.

"Not at all. In fact, I have some errands to run in this area in the morning, I thought I might just stay the night," he responded cooly.

"What errands? I'll make sure to stay out of your way," I responded curtly.

"That won't be necessary. I have no qualms with the two of you tagging along."

I stopped abruptly and rounded on him. "Or you could just go. Don't act like you haven't had the practice in not meddling in my life." My sudden harshness surprised me.

"Don't. Make. A. Scene," he replied sternly.

"Then get the hell away from me," I told him, my anger flowing freely now.

Draco suddenly piped up, alarmed. "Suspiria, your eyes!"

My father roughly gripped my arm and I was escorted into the leaky cauldron, and rushed up the stairs that lead to the rooms. "You're hurting me!" I protested, ripping myself free.

"Control yourself. Do you want half of London hunting you down?" he demanded, glancing up and down the deserted hallway to make sure we were alone.

"Why? Is having a daughter _inconvenient _for you again? Maybe next time you have a drunken one night stand you should stick to your own species."

"Suspiria, you are too young to understand the consequences of some of the choices you're making. I'm only trying to protect you."

"Yeah, well you couldn't manage to protect my mother, could you?"

The sting of my last words hung in the air. Finally he spoke. "The boy has seen too much. I'll make arrangements to move you before he starts to ask questions."

"Screw you. You don't get hide me away anymore and pretend I'm not real, and you certainly don't get to make decisions for me," I spat.

A touch of sadness touched his expression. "What happened to you? What happened to the little girl who used to come running to me?"

"Her father stopped showing up."

Draco rounded the corner in the hallway, and stopped awkwardly at the end when he saw us. "It's okay," I told him before turning back to my father. "He was just leaving."

A little while later, Draco was sitting on the bathroom counter while I scrubbed the night's makeup off my face.

"So, are you going to tell me what happened back there?" he asked.

"Nope," I responded lightly.

"Not even why your eyes started to glow like slept with glow powder in your sleeping mask?" he prodded.

I sighed impatiently and looked up at him. "Look, your parents are Death Eaters, right?" He half shrugged in response, so I continued, "So I bet you've seen something before that you weren't supposed to talk about, or ask about, or even mention? This is like that. I need you to pretend it doesn't matter, pretend that it didn't happen."

An expression I couldn't understand came over his face, and when he spoke his voice was unmistakably vulnerable. "Suspiria, I'm so tired of not asking."

I was hit with a pang of guilt. For the first time there was someone else who absolutely knew what it was like growing up with all the secrets, all the lies, all the silence. I reached out and caressed his cheek. "It's not forever," I vowed. "You just have to let me figure it all out first." He leaned into my hand, eyes closed and nodded in contentment.

After a few moments, he lightened the mood by asking mischievously, "So what do you want to do tonight?"

I giggled at his insinuation. "It's almost 9:30 on a Sunday, what is there to do?" I flipped my head upside down to so I could twist my hair into a bun.

"I'm sure we can find a way to amuse ourselves," he mused playfully.

I unstrung the back of my dress and let it fall to the floor, ignoring his surprised expression and sudden lack of eye contact, and pulled a tank top over my head. Then I surreptitiously unhooked my bra, slid the straps off over my arms and tossed it onto the counter. Draco was still watching me, so I walked over and stood in between his legs that were dangling from the counter and placed my hands gently on his thighs. I stretched up, pressing my body and mine and said in a purposefully breathy voice, "I could use you as a cheap pawn to sort through my daddy issues."

I saw him gulp and broke into a smile, backing away. "You boys are so easy," I told him as I walked back out into the bedroom and flopped onto the bed.

He followed me. "That was just mean," he responded, joining me on the mattress.

I snickered. "I'm curious," I said. "After spending my morning with Pansy I can't imagine she ever let you have any fun."

"I can be pretty persuasive," he replied. "But girls always want some big romantic gestures for everything. It's like she had it so built up in her head. But what about you? You said sex wasn't a big deal where you were from."

"Well, it's not. I feel like everyone tries to make it into this big magical moment, but it's just not. Like, it's a big deal until you start doing it, and then it just suddenly isn't. Plus, most of my friends parents were always pretty calm about the whole thing so like it wasn't some forbidden act like you guys have it here," I responded. "Which is weird, because like a co ed school with no parents for most of the year seems like it would be full of teenagers just going at it."

Draco laughed. "It's not unheard of. A lot of students have scoped out a few private spots by their sixth and seventh year. But nobody really makes it super obvious because of how many first years are around," he told me. "Plus, you have to remember that the person who would reprimand us is our Head of House, which, you know, is _your dad._"

Draco and I had a good laugh about that one. Somehow I couldn't imagine my father having to discuss safe sex with two students, especially given his clear discomfort with the subject in the last week. "You know he thinks we're sleeping together," I reminded Draco.

"Yeah, it's kind of frustrating having to deal with that without, you know, _getting to do that_," he responded.

"I mean nothing is stopping you," I pointed out. "We sleep in the same bed, and we're prone to sticking our tongues in each others mouths, and we have absolutely zero supervision. I guess I assumed you didn't want your first time to be with a girl you've only known for three days."

He thought about that. "I honestly can't believe it's only been three days," he revealed. "It feels so much longer."

"It does," I agreed, before suddenly recalling something. "Pansy asked me today if I was your new girlfriend."

"What did you tell her?"

"That you barely know me and that there is no way you'd be able to get over a breakup that fast."

"Oh man, that sucks," Draco said, leaning closer to me. I raised my eyebrows curiously. "I'm sorry I'm going to have to make you a liar," he finished, flashing a quick smile before pressing his lips to mine.

I giggled and kissed him back, reaching my arm out to switch off the bedside lamp before rolling over onto him.


	5. Chapter 5

"I'm so. Damn. Bored," Draco drawled.

I lazily turned my head to look at him. "You've already said that," I reminded him. But I was bored too. It was going on three weeks since we had been stuck in a hotel room, and there was simply nothing left to do. On top of it all, a heat wave had been hovering over London for days and no matter how many atmospheric charms Tom put up, the air still felt muggy and made everyone tired.

"We could go get ice cream," I suggested.

"We've literally tried every flavor. What about checking out the new stock at Flourish and Botts?" he responded.

"They won't have anything new for weeks, they're still waiting on the new school lists to come out."

"Go crawl around in Knockturn Alley?"

"Five separate shop owners wrote to our parents last time," I reminded him. In fact, that was the only word I'd gotten from my father since he showed up unexpectedly. Over the following days, guilt had set it, and I couldn't help but feel our extended stay here was partly my fault. He probably just didn't want to deal with me.

"Oh yeah. What kinds of things did you do for fun back home?" he asked.

"Oh I don't know," I responded, half smiling as I remembered. "Crawled around in the woods, had some bonfires, went swimming in a river. We used to tell scary stories at night, I remember this one where- what's up?" I noticed Draco had perked up suddenly.

"Suspiria, have I ever told you about the lakefront cabin my family owns? That is completely unoccupied at the moment?" he said. I raised an eyebrow with a smirk. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Absolutely," I replied.

At that point, few moments in my life compared to how gratifying it was to finally check out of that hotel room. As much as I loved Diagon Alley as a kid, I had learned that it is far more fun as a day trip.

Unfortunately, it took literally hours to pack up since we had started rejecting room service about a week in. Turns out neither of us were great housekeepers. By the time I had forged a letter from my father and sent it to Tom notifying him that we were to return home, hauled our trunks out of the room and arrived at the cabin via Floo, the last rays of sun were already disappearing from the sky.

Though our arrival was a little delayed, the change in scenery had visibly uplifted our spirits. "Do I get the grand tour?" I asked as soon as we shoved our trunks into den.

Draco loved to show off, and agreed readily. He was actually a pretty decent tour guide. The cabin was more of a mansion, but was definitely constructed with logs. According to Draco the estate, like most things in his family, had been passed down for generations. As a child they would spend weekends here or there, but it had remained pretty unused since he started school. I understood why; I couldn't fathom Lucius Malfoy in a flannel jacket roughing it outdoors. Or near the outdoors, anyway.

The entire back wall was comprised of huge paneled windows, and had a magnificent view of a clearwater lake. A smattering of trees nestled on either side of the lodge, but a small beach came within a stones throw of the deck. The main room had a ceiling that stretched all the way to the top floor, and a wooden railing ran along the interior second meeting at a gently curved staircase that led to the bedrooms. The kitchen had a rustic looking wood stove, but of course was upgraded with all the amenities. I presumed Narcissa had something to do with that.

After the tour, we decided to eat dinner out on the deck. I couldn't help but be enamored by the view. It was like something out of a story book.

"I know. The stars, the water, there's even a full moon out tonight. It's perfect," Draco remarked.

I looked up at the sky to see he was right. There wasn't a cloud in sight and the darkness was lit up, the cool moonlight clashing with the warm light flooding onto the deck from inside the lodge. I looked over at Draco, debating. "Remember that thing I told you to pretend didn't see?" I asked cautiously.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," he feigned before adding, "unless you've decided to tell me."

I bit my lip and shook my head. "I'm sorry, I still can't explain it. But, if you're interested, I can show you another thing you're not supposed to ask about."

He looked at me, unable to mask his burning curiosity. I took that as a yes. "First, are there any other cabins around? Or any muggles who camp around here?" I asked.

"Nope. We own the entire perimeter a few kilometers wide. Plus there is loads of enchantments everywhere, I don't think this place even shows up on a map," Draco responded.

I smiled. Perfect. "Go turn off all of the lights inside," I instructed him. "And you may want to change into some swimming trunks."

He arched a brow, but quickly jumped up to complete the tasks. I stood up and began walking towards the water, stopping for a moment to let my eyes adjust when the cabin lights went off behind me. I forced myself to take a deep breath, and pulled my dress off over my head. Then I swiftly slipped out of my undergarments, self consciously pulling my hair forward to cover my chest. I walked forward until my toes were mere centimeters from the water's edge.

"How an I supposed to see anything?" Draco called from the deck. "I'm not allowed to use magic!" I heard him stumbling in the darkness, unable to see as well as I could. I waited for him to reach me, and I heard him slow hesitantly as he realized I was undressed, facing away from him.

"Suspiria?" he said, concern in his voice.

I turned my head just slightly to make sure he could hear me, and hoped my voice wouldn't shake. "Are you ready?" My voice was much quieter than I had intended.

I heard him take a hesitant step forward in response. "Stay right there," I called, a little louder, and heard him halt. "I just need a minute. I've never shown this to someone before."

I stood there for a moment longer, trying to will myself forward but also painfully aware that Draco's eyes had definitely adjusted enough to see my bare ass, and finally took the last few steps into the water, ignoring the cold and striding until I was waist deep.

As I turned around to face him, I heard Draco call out in surprise. The water literally transformed, rippling out from me as if something very heavy had suddenly dropped down into it. An iridescent glow chased the waves, giving the illusion that a giant light source had just been lit underneath the water.

Draco was standing at the edge of the water, eyes wide, mouth slightly open in awe. But as the faded, his expression turned to one of confusion, and, was I imagining it? Fear? Eventually, his shocked thawed from his face and he managed to croak out, "I can see just fine now." He even managed a shaky laugh.

I reached out my hand, inviting him to come closer, but he hesitated at the edge of the water. "It won't hurt you," I promised. He dipped a toe in and relaxed slightly. The light in the water seemed to jerk away from him for a moment before relaxing back around him. Intrigued, Draco took a full step in, watching as the light repeated the strange behaviour.

He watched the water carefully waded in, but stopped an arm's length away. "Are you afraid?" I asked quietly.

"What are you?"


	6. Chapter 6

"Check this out!" Blaise shouted as he leapt off the dock and cannonballed into the lake. He emerged back to the surface laughing, shaking the water off of his hair. Pansy and Daphne shrieked as the waves hit them, splashing some water in retaliation.

Music blared from the house, and the lake was full of my future classmates. Everyone was pretty interested in finding out I was their teacher's daughter, and Pansy enjoyed the minor popularity in having met me beforehand.

"Come on Suspiria, the water's great!" Blaise called out to me.

Blaise was really handsome, but the quality was less appealing since he was far too aware of it. Pansy and Daphne hung onto his every word, though he seemed bored by their attention. I wasn't bored of Blaise's attention yet, but I was very aware of Draco watching me carefully from where he sat by the fire pit with a couple of his friends.

I stood up and removed the wrap that I wore around my waist to reveal my emerald swimsuit. I had purchased it as a tribute to my future house. Then I sprinted full force down the dock and managed a neat front flip before I sliced into the water. The water remained it's clear color, the moon was waning and dipping behind some wispy clouds at the moment.

Blaise gave me an appreciative look, which didn't escape the notice of Draco. A dark expression crossed his face when I glanced over to check, and he took a swig from the firewhisky bottle he was passing around with his friends.

I had been quickly introduced to them. They were both very burly, built like linebackers. Though they looked rather brutish, I knew they could also probably outrun me, and pretty casually kick a ball across a field. They both seemed rather quiet, and I was still trying to sort out exactly what their friendship was based on. I found myself wondering exactly what the three were quietly discussing. Draco and I had been in our own little world this summer, it felt strange to realize he had friends that he had spent most of his year with for four years that I knew nothing about. Was I wrong to trust him?

"Hello, earth to Suspiria," Pansy said waving her hand in my face.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"I said, where did you learn to dive like that?" she said, kindly pretending to not notice where my gaze had been directed.

"Back home we had this insane lake with a pretty steep cliff on one side. You could jump from any height you wanted to, and a lot of us worked our way all the way up to the top. It was kind of like a right of passage," I told her.

"Blaise, I'm _starving_," Daphne interrupted, unnecessarily hanging on to his arm.

"Looks like there's some food on the deck. We'd better hurry, before Crabbe finishes it off," Blaise joked as we all started heading for the shore.

"Hey Suspiria, what's that in your belly button?" Daphne asked when I emerged from the water.

"Seriously Daphne? They're _all the rage_ in the States. Way cuter than a belly button ring," Pansy supplied for me. I couldn't help but smirk to myself, and wondered if my little fib might start a fashion trend. My mother would have gotten a kick out of that, I thought with a sudden twinge of sadness.

When I got to the fire pit, I couldn't sit next to Draco without also sitting in one of his friend's lap, so I ended up curling up on a bench next to Pansy and Daphne, both of whom seemed too shy to claim the empty seat next to Blaise.

After we passed around some food, we were all content to chatter until the conversation slowly faded into silence. Then, Daphne noticed the still rather full bottle of firewhisky that was sitting on the ground near Draco's leg. "Oooh," she squealed. "We should play never have I ever!"

I groaned. "Come on, that game is for first years who are confessing to their first kiss," I protested.

"Oh, now I really want to know what secrets you're hiding," Blaise said pointedly.

"I've never heard of it," Draco's friend Gregory piped up.

"It's easy. One of us says something we've never done, and if you've done the thing, then you drink. And you _can't_ lie," Pansy volunteered.

"Don't worry Goyle," Blaise added with a sneer, "I'm sure you won't be drinking much!"

"Everybody grab a cup!" Daphne commanded, taking the bottle and pouring a healthy amount into everyone's red solo cups. "I'll go first!" She put a manicured finger up to her chin as she thought. "Never have I ever…. Kissed a Malfoy!"

Pansy and I shot an exasperated glance at each other and drank, but the real surprise came when Blaise also raised his cup to his mouth. "What?!" We demanded.

He laughed in good spirits, "It was a dare! My honor was on the line," he explained.

Draco finally piped up, "We agreed to never discuss that, Zabini."

"Hey man, you heard the rules. No lying," he responded, causing a second round of laughter. "Alright, me next. Never have I ever worn a bra."

"I feel targeted," I said, raising my cup once again.

"And how!" Daphne said.

Draco also decided to take a shot at me, "Never have I ever had a father who was a teacher."

Pansy shot back. "Never have I ever dumped someone via Owl."

"Oohhhhh," sounded out. Luckily, Pansy seemed to still be in good spirits.

It was my turn. "Never have I ever ridden a broomstick," I said. I got quite a few shocked looks, excluding Draco, before Blaise responded.

"Are we already moving to euphemisms?" he asked deviously.

"In this case, I'm afraid I'm being literal," I responded.

"Well in the not literal sense I may have to change that," he replied with another appraising look. I noticed Draco's hand tighten into a fist at that remark and warily wondered how much of that firewhisky was gone before Daphne poured out everyone's shares.

Daphne moved along. "Never have I ever gotten head."

Everyone, including a noticeably pink Pansy, drank except for Crabbe.

"Never have I ever broken a bone."

"Never have I ever stolen money from a parent."

"Never have I ever cheated on a test."

"These are boring!" Blaise exclaimed. His cheeks were getting a bit rosy. I had slowed down to taking the barest of sips to pace myself, but he had almost gone through his entire cup. He looked straight at Draco. "Never have I ever had sex with a Malfoy."

Pansy and I kept our cups down and everyone got very quiet. Finally, I tried to break the tension, "I mean Draco _did_ think I was banging his dad when we first met."

It worked. Suddenly, everyone had to hear the story and Draco and I were barely able to tell it without bursting into giggles every few seconds.

Finally everyone calmed down, and Pansy stood up to stretch. "What time is it? I think we'd better get out of these swimsuits and get some sleep."

There was a murmur of agreement, and people started heading back into the lodge, with Draco hanging back, waiting for me. Once we were alone I finally spoke. "You're quiet tonight. Was this whole party an attempt at avoiding me?" I asked, not quite able to make it sound like I was teasing him.

"What am I supposed to do Suspiria? You're not human and you just expect me to be okay with that? You make me promise to not ask questions, then do that?" he asked harshly.

I scoffed. "You never shut up about how no one trusts you with anything, how your life is all about secrets and this is how you react when I finally tell you the truth? If you want me to leave you alone, just say it," I spat.

He closed the distance between us in two quick strides and gripped my shoulder, his face a mere inches from mine. I could smell the whiskey on his breath and his eyes looked intense. "I can't," he said with a clenched jaw. "I can't stop watching you, I can't stop _wanting _ you. You just show up in my life, with no warning, and I feel better. You made me forget about all the secrets and the lies, and the dead boy and the conspiracies. Then you drop this on me and I'm so mad, Suspiria I'm furious" -His grip on my shoulder tightened to an almost painful level- "and I can't tell you to leave. I can't even pretend to want you to leave."

He stared at me, chest heaving, for a full minute before his breathing slowed and his hand loosened. I gently placed my hands on either side of his face and saw his expression soften. "Let me fix this. Just wait until the morning when everyone's gone and I'll tell you whatever you want to know."

"Let's just go inside."

Blaise was lounging on the couch inside, still shirtless, but had changed from his swim trunks into some grey sweats. In the light of the house the flush on his face was rather obvious. He stood up, swaying slightly and sauntered over to me, standing too close for courtesy.

"It's time for bed Suspiria," he said. "How about you come with me and I'll teach you how to ride a broomstick?" he asked suggestively with a smirk and what I'm sure he thought was a seductive look.

I felt Malfoy tense up next to me. "Okay Blaise, very funny, but I think you've hit the bottle too hard," I responded.

"Baby I hit it just hard enough," he said, spewing his breath all over my face.

"Okay, you need to back up," I responded sterny.

He leaned in closer. "Or what? Are you going to teach me a lesson? Come on, it's not like he's been keeping you satisfied, he admitted that much at the fire pit," Blaise continued on.

Malfoy abruptly shoved Blaised away, sending him stumbling to regain his balance. Once Blaise regained his footing, any trace of laughter disappeared from his face. When he started forward again, he was heading toward Draco.

"What's going on?" Daphne asked, her and Pansy emerging from the hallway.

"You guys just need to take it easy," I said warily, glancing between the two. Blaise wasn't the only one who appeared flushed.

"What's the matter, Malfoy? Afraid your girl's going to like me better? Don't worry, Parkingson at least waited for you to dump her with your pathetic letter before she began throwing herself at me," Blaise persisted. "Trust me, when she wakes up in my bed tomorrow morning, she won't even be thinking about you."

I didn't even have time to glance at Pansy to judge her reaction to Blaise's comments. A huge bang sounded and Blaise was suddenly hurled across the room where he hit the wall and crumpled to the floor. Malfoy was standing there, wand drawn, looking furious.

Blaise immediately jumped up, drawing his own wand. "Oh, you think you're a big man, Malfoy? Daddy's not here to bail you out, you sure you want to do this?"

Malfoy clenched his jaw in response, not lowering his wand.

"_Stupefy!"_

I leapt out of the way, not wanting to literally get caught in the crossfire.

"Stop it! Stop it! We're not supposed to use magic! Stop it!" Pansy cried.

"Oh please, they have no way of knowing it's underage. We're on a Malfoy property," Daphne countered. "They probably will just assume it's Mr. Malfoy."

"Oh will they?" a much more mature voice asked from the doorway, making us all jump. Lucius Malfoy was standing there, taking in the scene. "I've just been alerted by a colleague that some underage magic was happening at one of my vacation homes. Imagine my surprise when I come to see it's not a burglar, but my son's entire year being unsupervised in my home. I'm sure all of your parent's will be equally interested in this story. I'll be sure to ask them, as they will all be arriving shortly."


	7. Chapter 7

Turns out Mr. Malfoy has quite a few friends at the Ministry, as no one got even a warning about the use of underage magic that night. There were some pretty upset parents, however.

Severus appeared quickly and shoved a robe at me before most of the parents made it into the house. He noticed the bruise beginning to appear on my shoulder and quietly asked if I was alright. I nodded, looking down as I shrugged on the robe. I hadn't realized how cold I was.

Blaise's mother waltzed in and didn't even offer a stern look to her son, but managed a distasteful look at everyone else. She was beautiful, even the scowl she had didn't mar her features. I recognized Pansy's mother, who looked genuinely upset. Both of Daphne's parents showed up, along with her little sister who seemed ecstatic to be present during this ordeal. Crabbe and Goyle were both summoned outside by their parents, so I didn't get a good look at them.

At first, no one wanted to explain what had happened. This lead parents to begin throwing snide accusations at everyone other than their own child. Eventually, they were able to pull out a highly edited version of what had happened. Unsurprisingly, Blaise's mother seemed far more concerned with Draco's involvement than her son's.

At the end of it all, I was exhausted and I just wanted to go home. Then I remembered I didn't have one anymore.

Once everyone had cleared out only Draco, Severus, Lucius and I remained. I sat at the counter across the room. Draco was still sobering up, and refused to meet my gaze while Severus and Lucius spoke in low tones. I had the distinct impression that they were both afraid to tell Narcissa about this.

Though our fathers were speaking quietly, I caught much of their conversation.

"Is the Ministry planning on sending out warning letters? Have any of these children already received a first offense?" Severus asked.

Lucius chuckled. "You know most of these parents are almost as connected as I am in the Ministry, I doubt any of these kids have ever gotten any kind of warning. Not that it matters tonight anyway." Lucius leaned in closer. "My contact tells me that they sent Potter an expulsion letter for another underage magic offense."

Severus's mouth curled up into an awful sneer. "Oh how I'd love for that little show off to never disgrace my classroom again. Unfortunately we all know the old fool would never allow it."

Lucius shrugged. "Dumbledore apparently showed up at the Ministry bellowing about some life threatening situation. He managed to get a hearing, but I know who will be sitting in on that and none of them have any sympathy for the boy. Nevertheless, at least his troublemaking came at a convenient time."

Severus nodded. "Yes. Now, moving forward I will be making other arrangements for my daughter. I will admit that I can't tell who is the bad influence, but I'm not blind to the fact that at least one of them is. I believe we gave them far too much freedom."

"Yes," Lucius agreed. "I think I will go home and try to smooth things over. Unfortunately, we weren't planning on our son's return…"

"I will keep these two out of trouble for a few days until I can get her settled," Severus offered.

Lucius nodded and gave his son a disappointed look before exiting. Draco didn't see it. He seemed to be focusing very hard on not vomiting. Severus seemed to notice this too, and quickly rushed over to him to usher him into the bathroom.

When he emerged he had an exasperated expression and I was suddenly struck with a thought. At this moment my father is dealing with my drunk boyfriend, but a relationship preceded my arrival. Severus was a teacher, a Head of House to Draco. I couldn't imagine my father had previously handled any other student in this state. It eventually dawned on me that he was here for me. The sting of our last fight suddenly returned to me with a feeling of guilt.

I couldn't meet his gaze when he approached me. "Thank you," I said quietly staring straight down at the floor. "For showing up."

Me and my dad shared a moment that night.

It didn't last. After Draco had completely evacuated his stomach, Severus sent us to separate rooms to get some sleep. I was exhausted, and happy to finally strip out of my bathing suit. I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. I woke up early, habitually reaching my hands across the mattress, searching for him. I rolled over and felt a pain on my shoulder and last night's events returned to me.

I stood up slowly and walked to the mirror to examine myself. I had deep circles under my eyes, and my shoulder had developed purple tones. My stomach dropped when I realized you could see a distinct hand shape in the bruise. I quickly threw on a tee shirt, shoving the thought out of my mind.

I wandered out of the room, and saw my father sleeping soundly on a wooden chair he had dragged into the hallway. I wasn't sure if he was there to make sure Draco didn't choke on his own vomit or to keep me from switching rooms. I stood there for a moment, until he started awake. We exchanged a look for a moment before I finally said, "I'll make some coffee."

Draco woke up later in the morning, and we spent a very quiet day at the cabin. Severus, though he received many owls throughout the day, managed to clear his schedule enough that he could afford to spend every second of the day watching us, and he slept in his chair in the hallway every night. I wondered if Draco had as much trouble sleeping as I did. I wondered if he noticed the circles under my eyes growing darker, as I noticed his face grow more wary.

I desperately wanted to talk to him, to explain. He was so angry that night, and our days of silence had me questioning everything. Had his irritation festered? Was this enough to make him want to tell me to stay away from him? Did he blame me for what had happened with Blaise?

There wasn't anything I could say in front of Severus, mostly because he would be furious with me if he had any inkling that I disclosed anything to Draco. I knew so much, there was so much on the line, I could afford to have Severus feel like he couldn't trust me. My mother's last lesson to me was to never appear as a liability.

I only wished I could figure out what Draco's silence meant. Was it in response to mine? Was it embarrassment at my father's present? I spent three days driving myself crazy with those questions.

On the morning of the fourth day, Severus knocked on my door and told me to get dressed. Then he used his wand to quickly pack my things, before announcing, "You're going to be moved today. You'll want to grab a coat."

"When? Right now?" I asked, shocked at the abruptness.

"We will be leaving in a few minutes. Young Mr. Malfoy will be taking the Floo Network home where he will remain until the start of the school year," he responded.

I shoved past him out of the room. Draco was already dressed and standing near the fireplace.

"Did he tell you?" I demanded.

"Yeah, my father sent me a letter yesterday," Draco responded. "Where are you going?"

I almost sighed in relief when I finally heard his voice. For just a moment it felt like this nightmare was coming to a close. "I don't know, I don't think he will tell me. But I will write to you every single day, as much as you want. I know I owe you an explanation," I told him, grabbing his hand.

He glanced down and interlaced his fingers with mine. "I'm sorry," he said before glancing toward the room that Severus was still in and then lowering his voice. "I'm scared. I don't understand what's going on, and I don't know if knowing more is going to make it better or worse."

"Can't we just pretend you never saw anything?" I asked half heartedly.

"I can. But not with you. Not with this," he responded.

Severus emerged. "It's time," he said.

"I'll write back. Every day," Draco said. I ignored my father's presence and pulled Draco into a kiss, and I felt tears welling up. I couldn't figure out why but this seemed so permanent.

Draco gave me one last intense look before stepping into the chimney. "_Malfoy Manor."_

I turned to face Severus. He was hooking my trunk into a harness that was attached to his broom. He noticed my wary expression.

"I'm sorry, but there's no other way to get there. We will just be flying into town and then taking a train for most of the way. It won't be long," he told me gently. I recognized his tone, it was reserved, like he was editing his words.

I suddenly realized that while I had been so wrapped up in analyzing Draco's silence, I hadn't noticed Severus's. I glanced around the lodge, wondering if we were being listened to.

"Come along," he said in the same tone.

I followed him outside, still wary about riding on a broomstick. Back home, most of us learned to fly on thestrals or hippogriffs. Creatures you could form a connection with. Not to mention, this tiny piece of wood didn't look like it could support the weight of two people and a trunk. However, Snape held the broom horizontally and it floated in midair, unbothered by the weight of the trunk beneath it. He climbed on, and I tried to copy him without kicking him, but I was anything but graceful. He instructed me to hold onto him tightly, and then he kicked off hard from the ground. My breath caught as I glanced down and realized we were ascending at an impossible speed. When you fly with a magical creature, they don't just soar straight up, usually there is some bobbing as their wings gain momentum. I yearned for that familiar feeling as Severus leaned forward and we shot off, leaving my stomach far behind us.

Luckily, Severus had been truthful about the short trip, and we were quickly dipping down near the city of Perth. "It's going to be a long train ride," Severus told me. I finally got a hint as to where we were going when he purchased tickets to London.

"You're good with Muggle money," I commented once we boarded. The compartment wasn't very full, and the days of silence had me feeling confident.

Severus snorted. "I knew how to use Muggle Money before I ever laid eyes on a Galleon."

"Mom always said you were hopeless with it when you came to visit," I responded.

"Money in the States is different than here. She wasn't lying, I have no patience with their currencies - Muggle or Wizard. There's absolutely no reason I should have to exchange my galleons to pounds to dollars to Dragots and back again when I travel there," he grumbled. "You should get some sleep. You look tired."

"So do you. Can't imagine that chair was comfortable," I teased. "Even you have to admit that was a touch overdramatic."

"You two are nearly impossible to keep apart," he said with a hint of a smile.

"I can't figure out why it's so important to you to keep us separated."

"Well, apart from the drunken wizard duel, which I can chalk up to teenage antics," he said lightly before suddenly getting serious, "I find it concerning when my daughter has an unexplained bruise that she neglects to mention and is awful at hiding."

My face fell and I glanced down, noticing that two of the finger marks were peeking out from beneath my shirt collar. Pointlessly, I tugged at my collar to conceal them. Severus continued, "I am choosing not to ask you to elaborate because it would be incredibly inappropriate for a teacher to hex a student."

I sighed, suddenly feeling tired. "I think I'll take you up on that offer to catch up on some sleep," I yawned. I layed down on the seat across from him, drawing my knees up. The seat was strangely comfortable. Draco's absence seemed less pronounced in the small space, and I quickly drifted off.

People were already getting off the train when Severus gently woke me. Outside, evening had crept over the sky, and Severus had a car waiting for us. I sleepily lounged in the backseat, not hearing where we were going, but it wasn't a long car ride. Strangely enough, the driver dropped us off at a residential street corner that I was unfamiliar with.

The neighborhood did not look inviting. The houses looked rather grimy, and many of the exteriors were in disrepair. Broken and patched windows, garbage piled up, peeling paint. I hoped that this was simply a stop and not the destination.

Severus beckoned me to follow him, and we stopped in front of one of those houses. I started to walk towards the door, but he stopped me. "Hold on," he said, digging for something in his cloak. Finally, he procured a bit of parchment with some unfamiliar handwriting on it. Before he handed it to me, he said in a low voice, "Suspiria this is one of those life and death secrets."

I gulped and nodded, then took the parchment. It was only one line of text, scribbled in unfamiliar handwriting:

_**The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix may be found at number twelve, Grimmauld Place, London.**_


	8. Chapter 8

A house sprung up in front of me where one hadn't been before. It was somehow more decrepit than its neighbors, having several more layers of filth on its exterior. The windows had a green sheen, and the black door was faded and scratched. I turned to give my father a disbelieving look. He only responded by gently guiding me forward to the steps.

Inside was dim, and it smelled of decay. I felt as if I had entered an old folks home that had several deceased residents. A woman emerged with fire red hair with an excited expression. It fell when she saw me. "Molly," Severus greeted curtly.

She shook her head and her smile returned, "Oh, I've forgotten my manners. Molly Weasley," she said sticking out an arm.

"Suspiria Snape," I responded, smiling in spite of myself and shaking her hand.

"Well, we should get you upstairs, just about everyone is here," she said.

Snape stopped her. "She will be sitting in."

"Severus, she's just a child," Molly protested.

Another man emerged from the hallway down the stairs. He was tall and thin, and old. He had a long gray beard that reached his waist, and hair to match. Even from down the hall I could see two electric blue eyes peering at me from behind his glasses. "She will be attending," he said with an air of finality.

I picked up some voices from outside; others were arriving. "Well, come in, come in then," Molly said ushering me down the hall. The doorway she emerged from lead to a steep set of stairs heading down into a kitchen. The kitchen was technically very large, but extremely narrow to the point of feeling cramped. A long wooden table with a dozen chairs on each side was the centerpiece. The far wall held a large fireplace that appeared to have something stewing over the fire.

Many of the chairs were occupied by people I have never met; they certainly weren't Death Eaters. Almost as soon as I stepped off the stairs, I heard a commotion upstairs. Molly turned on her heel and rushed back up. Most of the people in the room hadn't noticed me yet, but the ones who had were looking at me curiously.

Severus led me down the row of chairs and we sat near the end. The old man sat down at the head of the table. Everyone else was still chattering lightly and the old man turned to me. "Albus Dumbledore," he said with a smile grasping my hand. "It's so good to see you again."

"Again?" I asked, tilting my head in confusion.

"You look just like your mother," was his only response.

I wanted to inquire further, but right then another group came down the stairs. Leading them was a short man who looked like life had chewed him up and spit him out. He may have looked comical if he didn't have such a paranoid air about him. He had a wooden leg, and a fake eye that seemed to spin around of its own accord. As he drew nearer I noticed a chunk missing out of his nose. Behind him was a woman with bright blue hair, a greying man in shabby robes, a tall bald black man, a rosy cheeked witch with black hair, and several others filed in behind him.

"Everything went smoothly," the leading man reported gruffly.

Once the newcomers had sat down, Molly appeared, breathless and went to sit down next to another red headed man. I glanced around at the table, taking everyone in, but I was struck by one man glaring at me. He was a sallow looking man with shoulder length, messy black hair, and I didn't know if he had slipped in with the crowd or had been waiting here when I arrived. I met his gaze, but when he didn't soften his expression, I dropped my eyes.

Finally, Dumbledore cleared his throat to silence everyone. "I understand we have much to discuss, so let's begin."

It was pretty boring, and my father didn't bother to explain anything to me as the meeting progressed. Apparently someone had dropped the ball on guarding someone, I gathered it was the sneaky looking man slumping down in his seat that every kept shooting dirty looks at. They had to rearrange some guard shifts, a few members spoke about a few Death Eaters they had been keeping tabs on. I glanced at my father when the Malfoys came up, but he kept his expression carefully composed.

Finally, Dumbledore addressed me. "I think it's time for you to tell everyone who you are, young lady."

I looked around the table and saw everyone giving me an expectant look. I still had no idea why I was here. "My name is Suspira Snape, and this is my father," I said hesitantly, gesturing to Severus. I expected some of them to look surprised, but none of them did.

"And your mother?" Dumbledore prodded.

"My mother was Azobelle Zosimos, and she was murdered at the beginning of summer," I went on.

Several of the members gasped. "Albus, is this true? The bloodline prevailed?" a witch asked.

Dumbledore raised his hand to silence them. "Suspiria is the only remaining descendant of the Panopolis alchemists. Her mother's death also made her the secret keeper to the Garden of Omne, a place we thought was lost to the ages. For this secret to fall into the wrong hands means the death of us all."


End file.
